International Treaties

Legal Materials

• United Nations Treaty Collection: (Harvard only) the United Nations Treaty Collection is a full-text database of treaties searchable in various permutations.
• European Treaty Series: A searchable database of treaties in the European Treaty Series (“ETS”) from the Council of Europe.
• Organization of American States Treaty Series: A searchable database of treaties sponsored in the OAS.
• Hague Conventions: All full-text and status information for the conventions from the Hague Conference on Private International Law.
• Multilaterals Project: From the Fletcher School, full-text multilateral treaties.
• Westlaw’s Combined Treaties database (CMB-TREATIES) allows broad searching of a number of Westlaw treaty databases (which also can be searched individually), including:
  • USTREATIES U.S. Treaties and Other International Agreements
  • FTX-TREATIES Federal Taxation – U.S. Treaties and Conventions
  • GATT Uruguay Round General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
  • NAFTA North American Free Trade Agreement
  • INTLENVL International Environmental Law Documents
  • UKHR-TREATIES United Kingdom Human Rights – Treaties
  • EU-TREATIES European Union Treaties
  • AU-AGREE-INTL Australian International Agreements
  • RIA-TREATIES RIA International Tax Treaties and Explanations
  • UKIP-TREATIES United Kingdom Intellectual Property – Treaties
• Lexis (1962 – (vol.1)), Westlaw (1980- (vol.19)) and HeinOnline (1962-2003) provide access to International Legal Materials (ILM), another treaty source.

Updating Multilateral Treaties

• Multilateral Treaties Deposited with the Secretary General (UN Treaty Collection): (Harvard only) This tool indexes treaties deposited with the United Nations, providing the current status of each treaty with the various signatories and full-text of reservations.
• United Nations Treaty Collection Contains the products “Status of Multilateral Treaties Deposited” as well as the full-text UN Treaty Collection. For alternate searching capabilities, including searching by KAV subject, treaty number and UNTS cite , use the UN Master Treaty Index, current to June 2004. From any law library terminal start menu, click on Programs/Selected Foreign and International/Hein UN Treaty Index.

Legal Context

• Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties

United States Treaties

• Title: TIARA
  Web Address: https://www.oceanalaw.com/
  Who Can Access: Harvard ID holders
  Where to Access: any terminal
  How to Access: Go to any Law Library terminal. Click on the Start menu, under Selected Foreign and International sources, click on Treaties and Other International Agreements Online (TIARA). When the website opens, click “Connect via IP recognition”. Alternatively, from any terminal on campus or off, go to TIARA in the HOLLIS catalog . Click on the Internet Link provided. Click OK on the copyright dialog box or enter your Harvard ID and PIN if offsite.
  Author: Oceana Publications, Inc.
  Description: TIARA provides two treaty resources for you. The first is their free treaty index. The second is the Treaties and International Agreements Online product which offers you citation information as well as full-text. It is often one of the first places to look for new US treaties before they are published in other sources.
• US Treaties and Other International Agreements, the full-text US Treaty source is available on Westlaw (USTREATY), on Lexis (USTRTY) and on HeinOnline.
• Lexis also has its own unique treaty database called US Treaties on Lexis (USTRTY), which is “an electronic compilation of full-text ratified and unratified treaties and international agreements, where the United States is a party or signatory. This includes not only treaties signed by the President with the advice and consent of the US Senate, but also international agreements from the U.S. Government. Documents are obtained directly from the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Senate, as well as authoritative U.S. government publications, including:
  • Treaty Documents: Treaties transmitted to the Senate for consideration, usually including transmittal messages from the President and the Secretary of State.
  • Slip Documents: Treaties and international agreements released by the US Department of State, but not yet printed in TIAS.
  • Treaties and Other International Acts Series (T.I.A.S) from 1985 – official slip treaty publication from the Government Printing Office (GPO).
  • US Treaties and Other International Agreements (U.S.T.) 1949-1984 – permanent form of official treaty publication.
  • Bevan’s Treaties and Other International Agreements 1776-1949 – the definitive retrospective compilation of US treaties and agreements.
• Senate Treaty Documents: (from GPO Access) Provides Treaty Documents (“T.Doc.”) since the 104th Congress.

By Subject

• Private International Law Database: (from the Department of State) Archived as of 1/20/01 by new administration. Provides texts of PIL treaties to which the U.S. is a party organized by subject area, along with other documents.
• U.S. Bilateral Investment Agreements: (from the Department of State Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs): Now an archival site.
• Treaties between the United States and Native Americans (from the Avalon Project at Yale University)
• Indian Affairs: Laws and Treaties (from Oklahoma State University Library)
• Income Tax Treaties (from the Internal Revenue Service)
• Trade and Related Agreements Database (from the Department of Commerce Trade Compliance Center)
• Agreements Negotiated by the USTR (from the United States Trade Representative)
• Arms Control Agreements (from the Department of State Bureau of Arms Control)

Updating U.S. Treaties

• Treaties in Force: (from the State Department Office of the Legal Advisor Treaty Affairs Office) A listing of all treaties and international agreements currently in force in the United States. Also available on Lexis and Westlaw under filename USTIF (from 2003 forward).
• Senate Treaty Actions: (from the Senate) The action taken by the Senate of treaties sent by the executive.
• Current Treaty Actions: (from the Department of State) Archived as of 1/20/01 by new administration. The actions taken by the executive on treaties and international agreements.
• United States Treaty Index on CD-ROM (available from the Start Menu/Programs/Selected Foreign and International menu option on law library terminals.)
• HeinOnline Treaties and Agreements Library: This product is accessible through the Harvard e-research portal to anyone with a Harvard ID. Provides online access in full-text, pdf format of a number of primary treaty sources including:
  • United States Treaties and Other International Agreements (Volumes 1-35, 1950-1984)
  • Treaties and Other International Agreements of the United States of America 1776-1949 (Bevans)
    (Volumes 1-13, 1776-1949)
  • Treaties, Conventions, International Acts, Protocols and Agreements (Malloy) (Volumes 1-4, 1776-1937)
  • Treaties and Other International Acts of the United States of America (Miller) (Volumes 1-8, 1776-1863)
  • Treaties and International Act Series (TIAS) (TIAS 11060 to TIAS 12734)
  • KAV Agreements (KAV 1-6311)

  Legal Context

  • Constitution: Article I sec. 8 and sec. 10; Article II sec. 2 and sec. 3; and Article VI sec. 2.
  • 1 U.S.C. 112a and 112b (the Case-Zablocki Act pf 1972)
  • 22 CFR 181
  • Circular 175 (11 Foreign Affairs Manual 700)
  • Treaties and Other International Agreements: The Role of the U.S. Senate – S. Prt. 106-71 (from GPO Access)

  Foreign Treaties

  • Australian Treaty Series (full-text and complete)
  • Argentina (index)
  • Canado-American Treaties (full-text)
  • Canada: Regional and Bilateral Trade Agreements (full-text)
  • Canada:Database of Canada’s International Environmental Commitments (links to full-text)
  • China (selected)
  • Croatia (index)
  • Costa Rica (index and slow)
  • Costa Rica: Investment and Trade (full-text)
  • Costa Rica: Recent Actions on Treaties (full-text)
  • Ecuador (index)
  • Egypt (selected full-text)
  • European Union (full-text)
  • Finland (full-text)
  • France (full-text)
  • France (search for legislative activity on recent treaties)
  • Germany (selected full-text)
  • Honduras (full-text)
  • Hong Kong Bilateral and Multilateral Agreements (selected full-text)
  • Hong Kong Treaty Project (index)
  • Iceland: Free-Trade Agreements (selected full-text)
  • India: Bilateral (full-text from 1947-1975)
  • Italy (selected full-text)
  • Latin America: Trade and Tax (full-text)
  • Lithuania (select “Treaty” for type)
  • Malaysia (index under “Agreements)
  • Mexico (commentary)
  • Netherlands (full-text select “Tractatenblad”)
  • Norway: Tax Treaties (full-text)
  • Peru (full-text)
  • South Pacific (full-text)
  • Spain (full-text): from Boletines del Senado Serie IV
  • Switzerland (full-text)
  • Turkey (under construction April 2005)
  • United Kingdom (indexes plus some full-text)
  • Uruguay (index)

  Treaty By Subject

  Arbitration

  • Treaties and Convention (from Kluwer)
  • Multilateral Arbitration Conventions (from the T.M.C. Asser Instituut)

  Criminal Justice

  • Extradition and Legal Assistance (United Nations Crime and Justice Information Network)
  • Money Laundering (International Money Laundering Information Network)
  • Narcotic Drugs (International Narcotics Control Board).

  Economic (see also Trade)

  • Basic Documents of International Economic Law (INTLAW:BDIEL) [Lexis: password required]
  • Investment Agreements in the Western Hemisphere (from the OAS)
  • Bilateral Investment Treaties (from the ICSID)
  • Inventory of the Competition Policy Agreements, Treaties and Other Arrangements Existing in the Western Hemisphere (from the OAS)

  Environment:

  • Environmental Treaties and Resource Indicators Project (from the Center for International Earth Science Network and others)
  • Pace Virtual Environmental Law Library (from Pace University School of Law)
  • Environmental Legal Instruments (from UNEP)
  • International Environmental Law Documents (INTLENVL) [Westlaw: password required]
  • Environmental Law Reporter – Statutes and International Agreements (ELR-STIA) [Westlaw password required]
  • Treaties Deposited with the FAO (from the Food and Agriculture Organization)
  • ECOLEX (from the World Conservation Union and UNEP)

  Human Rights

  • International Human Rights Instruments (from the United Nations High Commissioner on Human Rights)
  • Basic Documents Pertaining to Human Rights in the Inter-American System (from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights)
  • International Instruments from Refworld (from the United Nations High Commissioner on Refugees)
  • Human Rights Treaties and Other Instruments (from the University of Minnesota Human Rights Library)

  Intellectual Property

  • Treaties Administered by WIPO (from the WIPO Secretariat)

  Labor

  • ILO Conventions (from the International Labour Organization)
  • ILOLEX (from the International Labour Organization): Includes conventions and related status information and other documents.

  Law of the Sea

  • Oceans and the Law of the Sea Conventions (from the United Nations Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea)

  Tax

  • Income Tax Treaties (from the Internal Revenue Service)
  • International Bureau of Fiscal Documentation (INTLAW;IBFD) [Lexis: password required]
  • Tax Notes International (FEDTAX;TNI) [Lexis: password required]
  • Federal Taxation – U.S. Treaties and Conventions (FTX-TREATIES) [Westlaw: password required]
  • BNA’s Daily Tax Report (BNA-DTA) [Westlaw: password required] or (FEDTAX;BNADTR) [Lexis: password required]

  Trade

  • Americas Free Trade Agreements (from SICE OAS).
  • Uruguay Round Final Acts (from the WTO Secretariat)
  • Uruguay Round General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) [Westlaw: password required] and (INTLAW;GATT) [Lexis: password required]
  • North American Free Trade Agreement (from the NAFTA Secretariat)
  • North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) [Westlaw: password required] and (INTLAW:NAFTA) [Lexis: password required]
  • Lexmercantoria: Treaties Related to Free Trade or Economic Union (from the University of Oslo)
  • Trade Agreements in the Western Hemisphere (from the OAS Trade Unit)
  • International Legal Instruments (from Juris International)

  War & Peace

  • Laws of War (from the Avalon Project at Yale Law School)
  • CBW Treaties (from the Harvard Sussex Program on CBW Armament and Arms Limitation)
  • International Humanitarian Law: Texts and Treaties (from the International Red Cross)
  • NATO Basic Documents (from NATO Secretariat)
  • Major International Instruments on Disarmament and Related Issues (from the United Nations Office at Geneva)

  International Treaties in general

  Resources

  See Also

  Popular Treaties Topics

  • Treaties of the United Nations (UN)
  • Types of Treaties
  • International Treaties
  • Famous Treaties
  • Law of Treaties
  • Numbered Treaties